Rush to Calais after Theresa May’s promise on asylum claims

There are hundreds of migrants living rough in the area where the Calais Jungle once stood, charities sayPHILIPPE HUGUEN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

Theresa May’s promise to fast-track the asylum claims of migrants in Calais has led to an increase in the number of people trying to reach Britain.

Charities say they have registered about 200 new arrivals since the prime minister announced the accelerated procedure after talks with President Macron of France at Sandhurst, Berkshire, on January 18.

There are now said to be between 800 and 900 migrants from Eritrea, Ethiopia, Afghanistan and elsewhere in Calais. The French interior ministry says that about 100 migrants, mainly children, have arrived since the pledge.

When the Sandhurst Treaty was signed, Downing Street denied that it would encourage more people to try to reach the UK. The treaty was drawn up after intense lobbying by Mr Macron for Britain…

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